Eternal Forgiveness Temporal Punishment

The word of God is replete with scriptures that make it clear we have eternal life abiding on the inside of us if we are Christians. What that means is that we can never lose our salvation although many believe we can. If we can lose eternal life, then it is not eternal is it?  

Eternal life along with eternal forgiveness are inextricably linked. God does not save a life forever and not forgive that life forever too. God saves who He forgives and forgives who He saves. Why do I belabor this point? Because you have many that tragically believe and teach that a sinner that Jesus shed His blood for on the cross and saves can somehow void the power of the atonement through sin and nullify the grace of God once given to that person. What that means is that the person has allowed their feelings to override the authority and truth of God’s word. Saying it another way, the person does not have faith in the word of God; they have more faith in their vacillating feelings of doubt toward God and His word. 

That is a sin. 

We must not base our salvation on our feelings. They often betray us. We must base our salvation on the immutable word of God – only! If we hear and read the gospel to ourselves daily, the more faith will come (Rom 10:17), and the more confidence we will have in the promises of God. Doubt will disappear. Take rest in the fact that our salvation is secure. We can also take comfort that our salvation does not depend upon us to keep it. God is the one that saves us and preserves us in our salvation. So, what is the believer’s responsibility? We are to work out our salvation with fear and trembling knowing that it is God who is working in you both to will and to work His good pleasure (Phil 2:12-13). I heard one preacher say it this way, “We have to work out what God has worked in.”  Saying it another way, we must develop our salvation daily. That is what sanctification is all about – conforming to the image of Christ.  

Now I want to switch reels. When there is unconfessed sin in the lives of believers, that is when doubt is at its highest for many. Meaning that is when people began to lose faith in God and His promises. Guilt overrides faith. The word of God is still as powerful and present as ever, but the person who is in sin loses assurance of their salvation and relationship with God. The guilt one feels is a good thing. That is the Holy Spirit convicting one of sin (John 16:8-11). The point of this is to drive the person to repentance so that they can be cleansed of their present unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). Even as believers we need to confess our sins to God – not so that we can be saved for we already have salvation, but so that we do not break fellowship with the Lord. Confession of sin keeps our inner man clean. It clearly shows the love of God to chastise or punish us in this way.  

It would be wise for us to keep this truth in mind. The greater the offense, the greater the punishment. Just as our natural parents punished us when we got out of line so that we could 

get back on the right path, our heavenly Father does the same thing. It is all motivated by love of the Father to His children. We are not to despise the chastening of the Lord. Just because discipline is often needed; does not mean He no longer loves us. It is because God loves us that He disciplines. 

We are never going lose salvation if we sin. But be warned, if we persist in unrepentant sin, then God as an act mercy may decide to end the life of a wayward son or daughter (1 Cor 5:5). They are in a habitual sin state. Currently they are of no use to the kingdom, and are an embarrassment to themselves, the body of Christ, and to the outside world. When the righteous behave like the wicked, they are being hypocritical. This is one of the main reasons unbelievers despise Christians and the church and God. We must represent Jesus Christ far better. We will never do this perfectly. 

But, if we are walking in the Spirit, we can do this faithfully. Allow our light to shine so that men can see our good works which will give glory and honor to the God we profess to believe in, love and serve (Matt 5:16).  

So, rest assured that if we are truly saved, we cannot lose our salvation and be forever punished. We can be severely punished as Christians if we continue to disobey the Lord. That is why I titled the article Eternal Forgiveness-Temporal Punishment. The tragic opposite of this would be Temporary Sins –Eternal Punishment. I will discuss that matter in another article. 

What is true justice?

Justice means just behavior or treatment. Fairness and equity. I would also add respect and equality among every citizen crossing racial, cultural, and religious barriers. 

A Biblical definition of justice is God administering righteousness to His people which is fulfilled in the salvation provided through Jesus Christ. In this sense, God’s holy justice eternally justifies sinners. Biblical justice is salvation by grace through faith (Eph 2:8-9).  

Negatively it is divine judgment on unrepentant sinners. 

I supplied the answer before discussing the problem. Now I want to discuss the problem of why human justice can never fully be obtained. 

Due to the total depravity of man, we can never experience complete justice in our neighborhoods, cities, counties, states, and nation. There are many who do and will not see all people as equals. The rich oppress the poor. The strong dominate the weak. The arrogant belittles the humble. Those who are anti-God hate and mock the religious and the list goes on.  

No matter how much government enact laws and write tons of legislation, our situation has seen little improvement. Black people's lives are better than they were in the 60’s during the civil rights movement (although some black conservatives disagree). It has only been 55 years since the voting rights act was made law on August 6th, 1965. When a black person is killed by police, groups like Black Lives Matter are declaring that it is justice for black people to loot stores and property because in their minds that is “reparations.” It is no big deal. The stores have insurance this one BLM young lady declared on twitter. When a people have been oppressed for so long, they will eventually attack like a wild animal fighting for survival. The rage they feel overrides their judgment.

So, in the minds of many two wrongs do make a right. Hate begets hate. 

In other words, oppress the oppressor. Do to them what they have done to us. Let them know exactly how the oppressed has felt for centuries and see how they like it. That in the minds of the oppressed is justice. 

When the wicked execute their own justice, it never leads to peace. It will only produce more hate, riots and killing. Resistance movements that do not bring about effective change will only produce more chaos. Yes, you will have many that will share the same ideals and join the cause, but no human organization is a one size fits all solution. Not even every black person shared the same ideology of Martin Luther King which was nonviolence and civil disobedience. Many with him wanted to take up arms to defend themselves against the white man that was brutalizing and killing them. Naturally, I understand that. It is about self-preservation. It is our natural impulse to protect ourselves and our families. 

What should be our response as Christians? The Bible makes it clear that vengeance belongs to the Lord and He will repay (Deut 32:35; Rom 12:19). To take matters in our own hands is to usurp God’s position and deprive Him of the recompense and justice He wants to execute.  

Do we want to put ourselves in the place of God (Gen 50:19)? 

Paul in Romans 12:21 said, "Do not let yourself be overcome with evil, but overcome evil with good.” Now, let me be honest. The idea of treating someone kind while they treat me with hate is quite unnatural. In my flesh I do not want to do that. You hurt me; I want to hurt you worse. But, if we are determined to do things God’s way, then we cannot get our own revenge. We have the right to be angry and not sin. We must love our enemies (Matt 5:44). This does not mean we trust them. Even as Christians this is awfully hard to do (i.e. love our enemies). That is why most will never do it.  To treat someone with justice after being mistreated seems downright stupid in the eyes of the world. It makes one look weak like a punk. The world is a blood thirsty place. It is kill or be killed. Only the strong survive right? 

We have to ask ourselves some serious questions as believers. Is our own reputation more important than obeying the commands of the Lord and glorifying Him? Are we willing to suffer injustice temporarily by the hands of evil men and wait on the Lord to even the score in His timing (Rom 8:18; 1 Pet 4:16; 2 Tim 2:3-4)?

It is wise to combat injustice. There is nothing wrong with peaceful protests to decry injustice. It is our first amendment right to bring awareness to the leaders of our country of injustice. Our country was born out of pain in the American Revolution against the British Crown in the late 18th century. It is just to punish those who do evil. Worst case scenario criminals should be executed. Those who do not value other people’s lives will forfeit their own through our criminal justice system or by law enforcement. It is equally fair for those in law enforcement to be punished if they are abusing and killing innocent law-abiding citizens. They are to protect and serve the innocent. Not harm and kill them. 

Because these are human institutions pure justice will never be meted out to everyone’s satisfaction. Where some may feel justice was served in a particular situation, others will feel a grave injustice was delivered. Like in the case with the O.J. Simpson trial some 25 years ago. Just as there were those that insisted, he was guilty of double murder because he led police on a slow speed chase on the 405 freeway with a gun to his head in the infamous white Ford Bronco driven by his friend Al Cowlings, there were others that felt he was innocent based on the evidence or lack thereof in his “Dream Team” murder trial defense. 

No one knows if he was innocent or guilty other than him. And even if he admitted now that he killed his ex-wife and her friend, he could never be indicted because double jeopardy is attached since he was acquitted in a court of law. 

Let me end by saying this: We as Christians cannot change the hearts of evil men. Only God Almighty can do that. How? Through the love of God through Jesus Christ and the proclamation of the gospel. Now to the world, the gospel is foolishness (1 Cor 2:14).  They cannot see how preaching can bring the necessary change our world needs. That is because they do not know the supernatural power the Word has to save souls and lovingly compel sinners to be righteous. Psalm 19:7 says the law of the Lord is perfect converting the soul (italics added for emphasis). It is because they are lost they cannot see how it delivers one from sins. A new heart must be transplanted into the life of sinful man for him to see how God sees (Ezek 36:26-27). Without that spiritual heart surgery man is spiritually blind and dead (Eph 2:1; Col 2:13). A man centered justice may give temporary solace to a few, but there will always be opposers of one group justice as injustice.  Once again, man’s justice has never been a one size fits all solution. Once God delivers His perfect justice on a godless world by getting rid of evil forever, all of us who are in the kingdom of God will live in perfect peace. 

Why did God spare David's life when he committed adultery and murder?

We read in 2 Samuel 11 that David committed adultery with Bathsheba who was the wife Uriah, a man in David’s army. Bathsheba lets David know that she is pregnant as a result of the affair. David decides he will try to conceal his sin by putting Uriah in the most dangerous place in the battle so that he is killed. Once this happens, he marries Bathsheba who of course is already pregnant with his son. All appears good. God is angry and sends Nathan the prophet to rebuke David of his heinous sins. David up to this point behaved righteously with all the people of Israel – executing justice for the innocent and punishing the guilty. Sadly, David does the opposite because of his lust for Bathsheba. He punishes the innocent (Bathsheba and Uriah), and he justifies himself who at this point is guilty. David deserved death for what he did. 

So, why didn’t God end his life? 

Because of God’s mercy and grace. According to the law David should have been executed, but God chose to spare his life (Exodus 20). David was also immediately repentant once confronted with his sin (2 Sam 12:13).  Notice his exact words, “I have sinned against the Lord!” David laments his sin in detail in Psalm 51. Here is the thing that we MUST keep in mind. Although God spared David’s life, he suffered great consequences for his sins for the rest of his life. The son of the affair dies (2 Sam 12:18). His oldest son Amnon raped his sister Tamar (2 Sam 13:11-17). Absalom in defense of his sister Tamar had Absalom killed (2 Sam 13:28-29). Absalom attempted to usurp his father David’s kingdom (2 Sam 16:16). Absalom has sexual relations with David’s concubine on the roof the palace as an act of extreme contempt, humiliation and control of the kingdom (2 Sam 16:22). This evil act was Absalom claiming the throne for himself. The rebellion had gotten so bad that Ahithophel who was David’s counselor conspired to kill David. The counsel pleased Absalom.  

All this trouble befell David because of his sins of adultery and murder. When we repent, God forgives our sins, and cleanses us from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). But that does not mean we may not suffer retribution from the Lord for the sins we committed. Remember, all sin ultimately is sin against the Lord. We have offended The Almighty. For that disobedience we are chastened (Heb 12:5-11). God is our Father. He loves us, but just like our natural parents, they discipline us when we get out of line so our Heavenly does the same. This is what God did to David. In Psalm 119:71 it says, "It is good that I have been afflicted that I may learn your statues.”  The psalmist of 119 (possibly David) knew that in order to learn God’s ways, sometimes discipline has to be administered. 

Once again God is merciful and gracious. That is why David’s life was spared. David made this declaration in Psalm 32:1-2, “How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered! How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity, and whose spirit there is no deceit!”  

In Micah 7:18-19 we read,” Who is a God like you, who pardons iniquity and passes over the rebellious act of the remnant of His possession? He does not retain His anger forever, because He delights in unchanging love. He will again have compassion on us. He will tread our iniquities under foot. Yes, You will cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” 

Providence and Sovereignty

Providence - When God from heaven invisibly navigates human affairs on earth so that ultimately His purposes are accomplished.

Sovereignty - Means ultimate rule. One who has absolute power of over all things.

Although God is invisible, He is very much involved in the activities of men. Nothing escapes His eyes. God sees everything happening here on earth all at the same time. For most people that is an unnerving thought - that God is watching everything they do. That is why so many people claim to be atheists. If they determine that God does not exist, then they have no one to be accountable to. That gives them comfort. It is however the most deceptive assurance one can have. Wishing God out of existence is a fantasy.

Providence is a very powerful attribute of God. What is so amazing about this virtue is that all of mankind’s actions in the earth are somehow woven within the tapestry of God’s will. Through all the choices we make no matter how wicked they are, God knows about them before they happen and uses them ultimately for His glory. Now at this point someone may facetiously argue, “If my evil is woven into the fabric of God’s will, how can my actions be evil ? It was God’s will right?”

Not even close.

Just because God permits evil does not mean He approves it. God gives man the ability to make choices - good and bad. if He didn't, we would be wind up toys - doing only what we were programmed to do. That is a robot, a computer and not a free moral agent. In order for a choice to be real, there has to be an opposing choice. God gives us the freedom to choose, but at the same time He commands us always to choose what is good for that is to our benefit, and for His glory.

Since God is sovereign in heaven and earth - all the universe, nothing in this world happens by chance. In other words, we do not get lucky or unlucky. As painful as it may be to hear, when an innocent baby suffers and dies from a disease, God permitted it. It was not a case of bad luck or bad karma. It was sin that brought about the child's death. Not the sin of the infant, but the result of worldwide sin, death (Rom 6:23). All of us have an appointment with death like it or not (Heb 9:27).

The pain of death of the most vulnerable should grip us with fear and alarm. The reality of God permitting infants to die should let us all know how much He hates sin. The thought of our small children dying who committed no wrong is deplorable to us. It is a painful revelation that God shows to us all. Even some of the worst people in our society see the death of the innocent as a horrible miscarriage of justice on God's part. Once again, the wages of sin is death. Sin not only affects the person committing it, it affects those who are in our sphere of influence mainly the ones we love the most. Sin is not only personal evil, it is also familial and of course worldwide. The offenses of one person can affect many based on that person's influence over others.

The earth is God's theater. Mankind has a role to play in that theater. God providentially controls all things behind the scenes yet evidence of His power and presence cannot be denied. Psalm 19:1 tells us that the heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork.

Point being is God is in control of everything that is happening here on earth. He operates through humankind and nature to accomplish His plans. Whether our choices are good or evil, God as the Master planner orchestrates all things according to His will and purposes (Psa 115:3; Rom 8:28). No human act of rebellion can stop it. Man thinks that he is getting away with evil because He's not immediately punished for it. But give it time - your sin will find you out (Num 32:23)!

In the final analysis, this world is not a cosmic accident. It was created by God on purpose. It was no surprise or shock that man would fall into sin. God predetermined that He would send Jesus to the earth to be a sacrifice for our sins and redeem us from eternal destruction. I realize those of us who are believers often wonder why God planned things this way. Answer? Because He wanted to. The Master of the universe answers to no one.

In the mind of God it makes perfect sense to create a world, fill it with life. Create man in His image. Command him not to eat the forbidden fruit. Allow man to choose to sin against Him because he has free will like God. Pronounce death on man as a universal curse for his rebellion. To send another Adam (i.e. Jesus 1 Cor 15:45) to give eternal life like in the beginning and reverse the curse of death.

It is the love and the wisdom of God to do all these things. That is what a sovereign and providential being is all about. Having the power to do things His way working His plan in history in the affairs of men.

When God Regrets

From a personal and a reader’s perspective it is essential that we pay close attention to when the Bible says that God repented or regretted a decision that He made regarding mankind. It’s not that God can make a mistake, but its important that we try as much as humanly possible try to probe closely into the scripture and try to experience how God feels when we rebel - it breaks His heart. God’s heart has been breaking now for thousands of years.

We know as parents the feelings we have when our children disobey us after numerous times of being warned not to do something, or they fail to do something we have told them to do. How many parents have had their hearts broken because of wayward children. And to be fair, how many children have been brokenhearted because of their parents bad behavior. The pendulum swings both ways. Well God’s pain over the evil of man is a grief we can never imagine. He sees this worldwide evil all at once. There should be no wonder why he destroyed the ancient world with the waters of a flood during the days of Noah. He could no longer endure the wickedness of man on the earth.

So He purged the evil by getting rid of him (Gen 6:6).

Well now the earth is more numerous than it ever has been in human history. There are over seven billion people here. Well that means there is even more evil now than there was back in Noah's day. God's judgement is not far away people! Many people question the goodness of God - wondering why does He allow evil to continue. Why doesn't He makes things right? God is long suffering and slow to anger which is a good thing for mankind. That is why He is with holding His judgement - for now.

Somehow in the mind of God there is harmony in both decisions - In delighting in creating Mankind, and then regretting and being grieved that He made them because of what man had become - a sinner. Both acts by God are part of His providence. There is no dichotomy. When man does what is right, it is to his benefit and it glorifies the Lord. When man commits evil, it is a curse to man and grief and anger with God. Believe or not evil is a servant of the Lord - an unwilling servant. God's plans are never ruined because of man's disobedience. Why? Because He is Lord of all and He navigates all decisions ultimately to serve His sovereign will and purposes (Rom 8:28).

Herein lies the difference. When man commits deeds of righteousness, He is really free and God's grace and mercy rests upon Him. When man is bent on evil, God's wrath is on Him (John 3:36). The Bible says that God is angry with the wicked everyday (Psalm 7:11)! A terrifying thought.

So I ask the question, "Is your life one that God delights in, or one that He regrets?" Only the person reading this article knows for sure. If one is honest with themselves, they know whether their life has been pleasing to God or regrettable. For those that are blind to the truth of your life, you need the divine revelation of Jesus Christ to invade your soul so that you're no longer walking in darkness of your sins, but you can be transformed into His marvelous light (2 Peter 2:9).

Why was Saul chosen as king? A second look.

In Isaiah 55:8-9 we read, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are my ways your ways”, declares the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.”

Simply put, we as finite creatures can never comprehend an infinite being. God knew the nation would reject Him and want a human king like the nations surrounding them. God knew that He would reject Saul as king in favor of David due to Saul’s disobedience. Here’s the most intriguing element of the narrative. God tells Samuel that He Regretted He made Saul king (1 Sam 15:10, 35).

That is an interesting declaration from the Lord. From the language it almost seems as if God did not know what Saul would do. But of course He knew all along. The question is why did the Lord choose him? The best reason I can give is that God chose him because He exercised His sovereign right to do so (Psalm 115:3). Although Saul's reign became an epic failure due to his own disobedience, somehow it was wrapped up in the Lord's providential plan. Mysteriously you have these parallels truths: God choosing Saul on purpose to be king, and God regretting the choosing of Saul once He saw how disobedient he was. Saul did not have a genuine desire to serve God in as much as he wanted to serve and aggrandize himself. Not only did he not obey the voice of the Lord, he built a monument to honor himself for a bootleg victory against God's enemies the Amalekites (1 Sam 15:12). The writer believes at this point Saul became an apostate - it was no longer in his heart to serve the Lord. Saul's rebellious attitude hurt God to the core. Yes! God has genuine emotions. Where do you think we get them from (Genesis 6:6)? The Lord knew Saul would disobey His command to completely destroy the Amalekites  and tore the kingdom away from him and gave it to David who served the Lord faithfully his whole life. 

Saul was a man after Israel's rebellious heart. Looking at Saul for Israel was like looking in the mirror: prideful, vacillating, faithless, weak, blameworthy, evil and idolatrous. God chose a man Saul's complete opposite, David, a man after God's own heart (1 Sam 13:14; Acts 13:22): faithful, valiant, terrific and victorious in battle, reliable, praiseworthy, one that would exhibit justice and righteousness among God's people. Tenderhearted, merciful and wise, humble and fearless for God (1 Sam 15:28).

Just like Adam and Eve was given the command NOT to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, yet did it anyway, Saul was given the command of destroying God's enemies but did not obey proving he was unfit to be the leader of God's people. Removing Saul as king was an act of justice against Saul, and also and act of grace by God over Israel. The role of the king had to be one who executed righteousness and Saul miserably failed to meet that standard (Proverbs 16:12).